Improvement in machines for burnishing boot and shoe heels



V. K. SPEAMR. Improvement in Machines for Bur-nishing-Y Patented June 6, i871.

ew e e H e o In" Sv so. n a il 0 o B VIVIAN K.,SPEAR, OF LYNN, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO TAILEY HEEL- BUBNISHER MACHINE COMPANY, OE SAME PLACE.

IMPROVEMENT IN MACHINES FCR BURNISHING BOOT AND SHOE HEVELS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 115,651, dated June 6, 187i.

To all to whom tkcsepresents sha-ZZ come Be it known that I, VivIAN K. Srnnn, of Lynn, in the county of Essex and State of Massachusetts, have made an invention of a Machine vfor Burnishing Heels of Boots and Shoes; and do' hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description thereof, due reference being had to the accompanyin g drawing making part of this specification, and in Which- Figure lis an end elevation, and Fig. 2 a vertical section of a machine embodying my improvements.

The object of this invention is to elfect, in an easy and economica-l as well as expeditious manner, the operation of polishing or burnishing the heels of boots andshoes; and to secure this end, the invention consists in the employment of a revolving circular disk of steel, soap-stone, or other suitable substance, formed upon its outer corner with an annular concentric rib, the convexity of which corresponds or approximately so to the concavity of the edge of the heel with Which'it is to operate, the disk being mounted upon a horizontal shaft duly supported Within or upon a suitable frame, and operating as herein expla-ined.

The accompanying drawing represents, at A, a horizontal shaft, duly supported in boxes formed in or applied to two upright standards, B B. Upon one or each end of the sha-ft A I mount a circular disk, C, upon whose outer corner an annular rib, D, is formed, the convex outline or curve of which, in cross-section,

approximates more or less closely to the concave curve of the edge of the heel which the disk is intended to burnish. Q This disk may be produced from hardened and polished steel, soap-stone, or other substance, but at present I prefer the latter material, as it preserves a smooth surface and performs the office required of it very effectively. The depth of the cavity E of the disk formed by the erection of the annular rib should be about equal to the depth of the heel which the latter is to polish, as the bottom of said cavity may serve as a guide or stop, against which the head of the heel is pressed by the operator, and lessens the labor required to hold such heel or its bo'ot in proper position. The bottom of the cavity E should be a iiat surface, and it may be found, in practice, desirable to abrade its surface by applying sand-paper to it or otherwise, in order that the finishing of the tread of the heel may be effected simultaneously with the. polishing of its edge.

I am aware that a revolving dish having its outer periphery convex in cross-section, and of a form approximating to the curve of the heel-edge, has been employed for polishing such edge. It has been found, however, that, owin g to the small extent of the bearing-surfaces of the disk and heel whichcome in contact in this case, both being convex longitudinally, and the difficulty of holding the 'heel steadily up to such disk, that a wavy and uneven surface is imparted to the heel, and much more time is consumed in the operation than bythe employment of the disk I have originated, in which the edge of the heel is held against the inner circumference of a con- Vex rib, by which I obtain practically the union of much greater surfaces, and avoid the evils attendant upon the method now practiced. In addition to this, however, I gain, by the use of my disk, a very important advantage over that heretofore employed, inasmuch as its' outer face or the bottom of the inclosure E serves as a bearing or edge-guard to prevent the formation of a burr or lip about the boundary of the tread of the heel, which the pressure upon its edge would otherwise produce.

Claim.

Witnesses FRED. CURTIS, Enw. GRIFFITH. 

